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Original poster

Graham, Gloria and Gossip! Religion Chat thread (part 4)

991 replies

nickelbabe · 06/08/2011 11:52

I know we've not officially finished the last one, but I wanted to get the link in before we ran out of room!

Everyone welcome - the aim of this thread is to generally chat about church life, or just gossip in general!
You don't have to be a regular church-goer, nor do you have to know what we're going on about!
It's not about debate, it's just about chatting
:)

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Original poster
nickelbabe · 10/10/2011 17:29

In our church, the Readers and the Churchwardens are different posts.

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Original poster
nickelbabe · 10/10/2011 17:30

So, Blue, is the priest going to be there anyway?
He's doign the Eucharist, and the rest is just talking?

what's his problem then? Confused

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Bluetinkerbell · 10/10/2011 17:44

nickel yes the priest is going to be there! To be fair there is (almost) always a priest there to do the eucharistic prayer and confession and blessing, there was only one occasion there wasn't one, as half of the congregation was on pilgrimage in Walsingham.
Yes, the rest is just introducing all the different bits of the service... and I will be doing the sermon talk which I have done a few times before, when our vicar had asked me to do it.
I don't know what his problem is really as I have done the 'leader' bit before on Palm Sunday... Confused

thejaffacakesareonme · 10/10/2011 18:40

Milly - that sounds amazing. I love hearing of God in action like that.

My kids would LOVE having animals in church, especially if they heckled. I can just imagine them watching the animals throughout the service to see if they did a poo or a pee. They'd think that was sooooo funny.

Blue - it sounds like your vicar is completely over reacting. Why didn't he just have a chat with you about what you were going to say instead of getting stroppy? That way, if he thought anything wasn't quite what he wanted he could have spoken to you about it there and then.

Bluetinkerbell · 10/10/2011 19:00

off to Bishop's certificate soon at the vicarage... will update you later if there are any more 'complications' or not...

PandaG · 10/10/2011 19:07

fantastic Milly - praise God!

hope the meeting goes well Blue.

MHD - I third that part of your calling is to engage with some of the difficult questions and challenging attitudes on here. I for one am often blessed by your answers. Hugs.

DS is busy doing his RE homework - some reasons why some people believe in God, some reasons why people don't believe in God, What I believe and why. He is finding the latter very difficult - 'of course I believe in God, it is the only thing that makes sense, of course He exists....'

Bluetinkerbell · 10/10/2011 21:14

meeting was ok, very interesting subject, but nothing been said about the service on Sunday.
Vicar was very friendly. Think he was just angry at church warden about him not being there and took it out on me :(

DutchOma · 11/10/2011 07:55

He is quite old, you said? Good opportunity to practise forgiveness.

Original poster
nickelbabe · 11/10/2011 10:25

ah, well, that sounds okay, then Blue - bad moods always do that, don't they. [roll eyes]
We all get in moods at the wrong people from time to time.
(although part of me wishes you'd told it it wasn't fair....)
:)

Years ago, there was a pets' service at our church (before my time). We wanted to do one again, but at the time, it was our lady priest as minister (temp care-of-souls), and she said that she wasn't sure about the theology of it. Something to do with not being sure that animals have souls. Hmm
I'm not sure how someone can have doubts on that - you only have to watch pets with their owners to see they do!
But, as a vegetarian, I can see that a meat-eater might not want to see animals having souls, because then it would make the whole killing-them-for-food thing more complicated. Wink
Of course, now we haven't got anyone to care for our souls (in a permanent sense), we have to wait again till we can have another pets' service.

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Original poster
nickelbabe · 11/10/2011 10:26

told him not it. Blush

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nickelbabe · 11/10/2011 10:27

panda - i'd say that was good reasoning, personally.

It describes faith quite well, that simple thought.

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Bluetinkerbell · 11/10/2011 10:33

I think what would solve a problem would be a rota for the servers in church, at the moment DH is serving every week, which is not fair on him, he should have a Sunday off too so he can sit at the back with me. Wink If they would have a rota, then vicar would know who will be there that week or not.
I will see how he is with me tomorrow and tell him how I felt about the situation. I know I can be honest with him and say those things.

Original poster
nickelbabe · 11/10/2011 10:35

yes, you definitely need a rota for everything.
In our church, we have a rota (handed out new every quarter), and it's got priest/leader of the service (we have a Reader who does the reserved sacrament on alternate weeks), people reading the lessons, person praying, servers, sidespeople (i think that's all of them)

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Bluetinkerbell · 11/10/2011 10:41

we've got a rota for sidespeople, people doing the offertory, prayers and reading the lesson, just not for the servers.

ah what to do now... clear and clean the kitchen or re-write the play about the prodigal son...
Think it will be re-writing the play Wink

madhairday · 11/10/2011 13:11

Is the play for Sunday Blue? There's a brilliant version of the prodigal son in one of the Bob Hartman books, don't know if you've come across him at all?

Afternoon all - actually feeling a bit better - yay!! For the first time in over a week I feel like I can cope with just normal life a little more, eg washing, cooking etc, which is good timing as dh off tonight on retreat. dd has said she is going to do all the cooking and I don't have to do a thing braces self for mess bless her, she can be so loving really and a complete pain other times Grin

Bluetinkerbell · 11/10/2011 13:17

mhd no it's for next month! so I've got some time to prepare it!
we're planning on doing it throughout the service and tie it in with the normal bits of the service, e.g. when he loses all his money, we'll do the prayers and the celebration at the end will be just before/or after the eucharist.
But it needs some work doing on it...

glad you feel a bit better! let DD do some pasta tonight, fairly easy and not too much mess involved Wink

MaryBS · 11/10/2011 15:17

I loathe pet services Blush, but then I like GK, so clearly have no taste :o

Original poster
nickelbabe · 11/10/2011 15:22

I've never been to one.
It could be fun. It sounds like there's a chance of it being messy, too. If it gets people through the door it can't be a bad thing Grin

But you love me, so it's all good Grin

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madhairday · 11/10/2011 15:39

All I can think about with Pet services is that Vicar of Dibley one Grin

I like some GK Mary, esp some of his early stuff, lately I find it a bit bland and samey but then again I am awkward.

MaryBS · 11/10/2011 18:17

Its just like the Vicar of Dibley, MHD, except as its in the Cathedral, its on a larger scale and the animals aren't so well-behaved. Picture a dog barking continually throughout the service due to not liking the presence of other dogs, plus the ones that snap at each other, and picture the amount of wee and poo that goes everywhere! Confused AND it stinks!

thejaffacakesareonme · 11/10/2011 18:27

A pets service - never heard of that up here, but it sounds good fun. The more mayhem the better!

lostinafrica · 11/10/2011 19:02

Do you really think animals have souls? Not being rude (briefly wonders whether to mimic sgb), just never considered it before. Do people ever baptise them?!??

lostinafrica · 11/10/2011 20:11

DH is away on business at the moment and phoned 5 hours ago to say that we've been asked to leave the country within a week.

Since then we haven't spoken and I can't get through to him. I'm sure he must be busy phoning loads of people about it. I hate uncertainty, though - and I've been living with it for over a year now (about our future and where we'll go next), so there's nothing new about this anxiety I'm feeling...

Bluetinkerbell · 11/10/2011 20:17

oh dear lostinafrica and there is me getting nervous and anxious about moving house in December! that is nothing compared to being asked to leave the country at that short notice!
good luck with everything! any idea yet about where you might be going next?

lostinafrica · 11/10/2011 20:32

Everything is totally unclear at the moment. There may even be a chance that we're allowed to stay - although I may have imagined that...

But I have just been praying (a bit of praying, a lot of thinking things through in God's presence, if that counts) and I feel much calmer now. If it happens, I can see God's will in it. And either way, I don't really need to know this minute. It's not like I'm going to start packing this evening.

It's late here - I'm going to bed now. I'll update you tomorrow if I can. It's nice to be able to share it with people enough removed from my situation that there's no chance of gossip getting out of hand before things are confirmed. Glad to have found you all in time for this. :)